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Humoral Theory and Therapy in Tunisia

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Anthropology and Mental Health
This chapter is in the book Anthropology and Mental Health
Humoral Theory and Therapy in Tunisia JOEL M. TEITELBAUM A people's basic health concepts are essential to understanding and treating their health problems, be they organic and/or psychic conditions. For example, persistent headache means various things to and in different cultures. In France it raises fears of brain tumor; in Tunisia it is thought to result from "blood" problems; Americans often ascribe it to the ten-sions of modern living. Anthropology can contribute to medical science a set of insights into the relationship between the beliefs and the "inter-personal nexus" (in Hsu's terms) of the patient. If anthropological con-cepts of illness are applied, the physician's capacity to diagnose, treat, and comfort persons, especially those who have non-Western or tradi-tional views, is increased. In Tunisia, a small Arabic-speaking Muslim country of North Africa, the inhabitants maintain a lively attachment to their Mediterranean cul-ture. Originally a Berber population, they have, over the centuries since 900 B.C., accommodated repeated invasions and colonizations by Cartha-ginians (Phoenecians), Romans, Vandals, Arabs, and Turks. Most recently during the French colonial protectorate (1882-1956), European technol-ogy and science were introduced and a variety of southern Europeans from Spain, France, Italy, and Greece emigrated to Tunisia. A Western system of higher education and medicine was established and sanitary measures were introduced to combat infectious disease through preven-tion and innoculation. However, many traditional remedies continued to be used by the indigenous Muslim population. Since the achievement of independence, Tunisia has evolved as a dual society — one sector modern, pragmatic and urban, economically geared to the West and the other part rural and technologically backward, looking inward toward the family

Humoral Theory and Therapy in Tunisia JOEL M. TEITELBAUM A people's basic health concepts are essential to understanding and treating their health problems, be they organic and/or psychic conditions. For example, persistent headache means various things to and in different cultures. In France it raises fears of brain tumor; in Tunisia it is thought to result from "blood" problems; Americans often ascribe it to the ten-sions of modern living. Anthropology can contribute to medical science a set of insights into the relationship between the beliefs and the "inter-personal nexus" (in Hsu's terms) of the patient. If anthropological con-cepts of illness are applied, the physician's capacity to diagnose, treat, and comfort persons, especially those who have non-Western or tradi-tional views, is increased. In Tunisia, a small Arabic-speaking Muslim country of North Africa, the inhabitants maintain a lively attachment to their Mediterranean cul-ture. Originally a Berber population, they have, over the centuries since 900 B.C., accommodated repeated invasions and colonizations by Cartha-ginians (Phoenecians), Romans, Vandals, Arabs, and Turks. Most recently during the French colonial protectorate (1882-1956), European technol-ogy and science were introduced and a variety of southern Europeans from Spain, France, Italy, and Greece emigrated to Tunisia. A Western system of higher education and medicine was established and sanitary measures were introduced to combat infectious disease through preven-tion and innoculation. However, many traditional remedies continued to be used by the indigenous Muslim population. Since the achievement of independence, Tunisia has evolved as a dual society — one sector modern, pragmatic and urban, economically geared to the West and the other part rural and technologically backward, looking inward toward the family

Chapters in this book

  1. I-XVI I
  2. INTRODUCTION: Whither the Fresh Course? 1
  3. SECTION ONE: Cosmologies and Mental Health
  4. Introduction 9
  5. The Relationship Between Witchcraft Beliefs and Psychosomatic Illness 11
  6. Humoral Theory and Therapy in Tunisia 19
  7. SECTION TWO: Culture and Psychopathology
  8. Introduction 27
  9. Japanese-American Suicides in Los Angeles 29
  10. Personal Situation as a Determinant of Suicide and Its Implications for Cross-Cultural Studies 37
  11. Multiethnic Studies of Psychopathology and Normality in Hawaii 49
  12. Kifafa: A Tribal Disease in an East African Bantu Population 57
  13. SECTION THREE: Focus on Mental Health Workers
  14. Introduction 71
  15. Coalition of a Kali Healer and a Psychiatrist in Guyana, Mediated by an Anthropologist 75
  16. Psychiatrists and Spiritual Healers: Partners in Community Mental Health 77
  17. A Model for Training Mental Health Workers in Cross-Cultural Counseling 83
  18. Work Styles Among American Psychiatric Residents 101
  19. Historical Antecedents of Mental Health Dilemmas in America 109
  20. SECTION FOUR: Prevention of Mental Disorder
  21. Introduction 123
  22. Primary Prevention: A Combined Psychiatric-Anthropological Appraisal 125
  23. Breaking Ties with Deceased Spouse 147
  24. SECTION FIVE: New Theoretical Directions
  25. Introduction 151
  26. Rethinking Our Premises 153
  27. Development of Theoretical Models and Levels of Interpretation in Mental Health 161
  28. "Brainwashing" as Therapeutic Technique in Contemporary Canadian Indian Spirit Dancing: a Case of Theory Building 201
  29. SECTION SIX: Methods and Models
  30. Introduction 217
  31. A Review of Methods in Holocultural Studies in Mental Health/Illness 219
  32. Schizophrenic Graphic Expression and Tribal Art in New Guinea 237
  33. The Vectors of Changing Values: A Model for Predicting Change in Mental Deviance Rates in Developing Countries 251
  34. Animal Modeling of Psychopathology: Current Status of the Field 259
  35. The Drug Detoxification Unit as an Ecological System 271
  36. Notes from the Interface: A Commentary on the Anthropology and Mental Health Symposium 287
  37. Biographical Notes 291
  38. Index of Names 301
  39. Index of Subjects 309
Readers are also interested in:
https://doi.org/10.1515/9783110819083.19

Chapters in this book

  1. I-XVI I
  2. INTRODUCTION: Whither the Fresh Course? 1
  3. SECTION ONE: Cosmologies and Mental Health
  4. Introduction 9
  5. The Relationship Between Witchcraft Beliefs and Psychosomatic Illness 11
  6. Humoral Theory and Therapy in Tunisia 19
  7. SECTION TWO: Culture and Psychopathology
  8. Introduction 27
  9. Japanese-American Suicides in Los Angeles 29
  10. Personal Situation as a Determinant of Suicide and Its Implications for Cross-Cultural Studies 37
  11. Multiethnic Studies of Psychopathology and Normality in Hawaii 49
  12. Kifafa: A Tribal Disease in an East African Bantu Population 57
  13. SECTION THREE: Focus on Mental Health Workers
  14. Introduction 71
  15. Coalition of a Kali Healer and a Psychiatrist in Guyana, Mediated by an Anthropologist 75
  16. Psychiatrists and Spiritual Healers: Partners in Community Mental Health 77
  17. A Model for Training Mental Health Workers in Cross-Cultural Counseling 83
  18. Work Styles Among American Psychiatric Residents 101
  19. Historical Antecedents of Mental Health Dilemmas in America 109
  20. SECTION FOUR: Prevention of Mental Disorder
  21. Introduction 123
  22. Primary Prevention: A Combined Psychiatric-Anthropological Appraisal 125
  23. Breaking Ties with Deceased Spouse 147
  24. SECTION FIVE: New Theoretical Directions
  25. Introduction 151
  26. Rethinking Our Premises 153
  27. Development of Theoretical Models and Levels of Interpretation in Mental Health 161
  28. "Brainwashing" as Therapeutic Technique in Contemporary Canadian Indian Spirit Dancing: a Case of Theory Building 201
  29. SECTION SIX: Methods and Models
  30. Introduction 217
  31. A Review of Methods in Holocultural Studies in Mental Health/Illness 219
  32. Schizophrenic Graphic Expression and Tribal Art in New Guinea 237
  33. The Vectors of Changing Values: A Model for Predicting Change in Mental Deviance Rates in Developing Countries 251
  34. Animal Modeling of Psychopathology: Current Status of the Field 259
  35. The Drug Detoxification Unit as an Ecological System 271
  36. Notes from the Interface: A Commentary on the Anthropology and Mental Health Symposium 287
  37. Biographical Notes 291
  38. Index of Names 301
  39. Index of Subjects 309
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